Wednesday, September 5, 2012

A jacket for a little guy!

I've been sewing, but not sharing any of it.

I traveled north and west recently and crashed with friends who have the cutest little guy ever. They've been nice enough to put me up several times this summer, so I wanted to reciprocate their kindness with a sewn gift for their kiddo. And I really, really, really wanted to sew a little-kid jacket.

The outer fabric is wool that I bought for probably $4 a yard at the Knittn Kitten in Portland two summers ago and have been hoarding ever since. I'm so glad I saved it for this project. I was nervous about sewing with wool (all I've used it for is to sew a stuffed fish ... how very Montana of me). But it was awesome to work with.

I used my walking foot for the whole thing, and had no problems. The lining is an organic sherpa by Robert Kaufman that I can't find online anywhere. I got it at the quilt store in Bozeman for half off, so all in this jacket probably cost $15. And I had all the materials on-hand, except the leather button loops and buttons.

I seriously love sewing clothes for little kids. It doesn't take long (I taped together and traced the pattern onto freezer paper one night after work and sewed the whole thing the next day) and the payoff is awesome. I still get amazed every time when I follow a pattern and it turns out to be a real coat or pair of pants or whatever. It's like magic. :)

The little guy it's for loves bikes, so I added a patch of bike fabric. He LOVED it. He turns 2 in February and I made the 18-24 months size. It fit perfectly and looks like it'll last through winter.

:::

I hectically finished a baby quilt recently, too.

First time using a flannel back, and it went great.

I love corners.

My friend made half the blocks, and I made the other half and quilted and bound it.